This invention relates generally to an upright mailbox, and more particularly pertains to an upright mailbox having a bellows member that allows the mailbox to laterally deflect when physically struck by another object and to maintain its deflected position until the mailbox is returned to its normal upright position.
According to a recent survey by the U.S. Postal Service's Delivery Management System, there are an estimated 36 million rural mailboxes in the United States. Mailboxes may be located in a variety of places: at the end of an unpaved driveway obscured by bushes and trees; protruding out from a small embankment to the edge of a narrow two-lane road; unsteadily mounted on a length of upright pipe or wooden framework adjacent the berm of a road; mounted on cinder blocks located at the entrance of a mobile home park; or attached to poles horizontally projecting toward the roadway. Such locations pose manifest hazards to mail delivery personnel and their vehicles.
The delivery of mail occurs year-round in every kind of weather condition. Slick, rain-spattered roads, icy or snow-covered highways, and fog-enshrouded country lanes are just a few of the many weather conditions mail delivery personnel encounter during their rounds. A mail delivery vehicle skidding or sliding into a mailbox unsteadily mounted on an upright length of pipe or a wooden framework or into stacked cinder blocks can be seriously damaged. Moreover, the delivery person inside the vehicle might also be injured. Accidentally colliding with a partially or wholly obscured mailbox may also cause the contents of the mailbox to spill and scatter across the ground; and, if the weather conditions include rain or snow, the contents will be damaged or destroyed.
Given the total number of mailboxes in the United States, both urban and rural, and the potential for accidents, the costs for vehicle damage, replacement of mailboxes, and mail carrier insurance are considerable. Therefore, the U.S. Postal Service has an interest in mailboxes that are designed with some type of breakaway capability. A breakaway capability would permit the mailbox, for example, to break off or deflect and bend away from its normally upright position when struck by a mail delivery vehicle. Other types of breakaway capabilities may include: a mailbox having, or mounted upon, upright springs that deflect laterally when the mailbox is struck and which immediately return, rerighting the mailbox; or a mailbox mounted upon some type of flexible, bendable rubber tubing that partially bends on impact and then immediately returns to its upright position.
There are certain obvious disadvantages with the above-described breakaway capabilities that immediately return the mailbox to its upright position or allow it to break away from its mounting. A breakaway capability that permits the mailbox to break off from its mounting will need to be reattached after the collision. The breakaway capability should be attached so that the mailbox will not break off from slight bumps and glances from vehicles and pedestrians; yet the breakaway capability must also permit the mailbox to break off when struck by vehicles traveling at a certain minimum velocity. It may be difficult to devise a breakaway capability that meets these two requirements.
The breakaway capability that includes a spring or a flexible rubber tubing also has disadvantages. Foremost is the fact that a mailbox mounted upon some type of spring or flexible tubing will immediately bounce back and possibly strike the vehicle. The force of the mailbox rebounding due to the spring or bendable tubing may actually cause the vehicle more damage than the initial collision.
Consequently, there is a need for a mailbox that incorporates some type of breakaway capability into its structure; the breakaway capability being either integral to the structure of the mailbox or attached to the mailbox. Furthermore, the mailbox will require a method of stable ground mounting to prevent the structure from toppling over when struck by a physical object. In addition, a mailbox with a simple, reliable breakaway capability should also have a compartment to store packages and a method to remove the packages stored therein.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide, for both rural and urban areas, a mailbox having a breakaway capability which allows the mailbox to laterally deflect away from its normally vertical upright position, and to remain in the deflected position after being struck by a physical object such as a mail delivery vehicle. The mailbox would then simply require manual righting in order to return it to its normally vertical upright position. A mailbox with the aforedescribed characteristics will greatly reduce the damage to mail delivery vehicles--and any other type of vehicle--as well as enhance the safety of the passenger or passengers.